Video editor Sutherland has put together an incredible compilation of the most popular song each year in the United States, beginning with the year 1940 (Tommy Dorsey – “I’ll Never Smile Again“) and culminating with 2017 (Luis Fonsi FT Daddy Yankee – “Despacito“). The list was originally compiled by Natalie Morin.
If you’re wondering why a certain song wasn’t included, it’s probably because the song didn’t spend the most weeks at #1 that year — even though it may have sold more copies in the long run. This also provides an interesting look at the history and evolution of pop music over the past 77 years.
A similar compilation was also done for the most popular songs from 1952 through 2017 in the UK.